Pathway Apprenticeships are the perfect opportunity for a school leaver to gain first-hand quality work experience and the programme has been designed as a stepping stone to a full-length apprenticeship qualification.
At Sixth Sense Training, we have given a few individuals the opportunity to become a Pathway Apprentice and gain industry-recognised skills so they can explore their career options for the future. In this article, they discuss their journey from leaving school up to becoming Pathway Apprentices.
Ellie Ramsay, Pathway Apprentice
What were you doing before your Pathway Apprenticeship?
Before I started my Pathway Apprenticeship, I was working in a restaurant and carried out duties like answering calls and taking orders. I also worked in an ice cream parlour serving customers and making desserts. I was looking for a full time or part-time job and that’s when I came across the Pathway Apprenticeship programme.
What has your Pathway Apprenticeship taught you so far?
My Pathway Apprenticeship has taught me how to send professional Emails, call people professionally on the phone, and how to fill out a spreadsheet. I have also learned how to fill out answers on Google Classroom and extend my answers for my Pathway Apprenticeship coursework.
What have you enjoyed most about working at your placement with Sixth Sense Training?
I have most enjoyed answering questions like these, writing down what all the different apprenticeships do and what route they can take you down. I have also really enjoyed learning how to send professional emails to people.
What do you hope to achieve after completing your Pathway Apprenticeship programme?
I am hoping to do something office based when I finish my Pathway Apprenticeship and use the skills I have developed to find my career path.
Chelsea Leonard, Pathway Apprentice
What were you doing before your Pathway Apprenticeship?
Before I started my Pathway Apprenticeship, I worked in a local ice cream parlour. While working there, I did several different duties such as cooking, taking customers orders, talking and answering phones and also cleaning.
What has your Pathway Apprenticeship taught you so far?
My Pathway Apprenticeship has taught me many things already, the main one is to have confidence in my work. At the very beginning of the apprenticeship, I would answer questions however I would be very unsure that I got them correct. This used to worry me a lot. Now I feel a lot more confident in my work and I’m not always second-guessing myself.
Another thing this Pathway Apprenticeship has taught me is the value of teamwork, some people don’t like to work as part of a group but whilst completing this apprenticeship, working with a team is so important and useful. For example, there have been times when we are all split up into groups so that we can try and help each other as much as possible so none is left struggling by themselves.
What have you enjoyed most about working at your placement with Sixth Sense Training?
I think what I have enjoyed most about working at my placement at Sixth Sense Training is getting to know the people and myself. Since starting my placement, I have learned new things about myself and I now have a really good idea of what I am like as a worker and how I would cope. The people at Sixth Sense Training are very kind and understanding and try their very best to make sure everyone is gaining and expanding their skills. Sixth Sense Training also lets you learn from your mistakes.
What do you hope to achieve after completing your Pathway Apprenticeship programme?
After completing my Pathway Apprenticeship the ideal goal is to gain full-time employment however I am aware that might not happen therefore I will keep on expanding my skills until an opportunity comes along. The more I expand and grow my skills, the easier it will be to find employment.
Erin Byrne, Pathway Apprentice
What were you doing before your Pathway Apprenticeship?
Before doing the Pathway Apprenticeship programme, I had recently left school and I was exploring my options and came across this opportunity which made me want to develop essential work skills.
What has your Pathway Apprenticeship taught you so far?
It has taught me a lot of skills such as communication, listening and more. It has also made me more confident in using computers as I’ve learned new things involving business skills.
What have you enjoyed most about working at your placement with Sixth Sense Training?
I have enjoyed being able to improve my business skills and some tasks I have enjoyed so far are putting information in a spreadsheet and searching for information about Sixth Sense Training, SQA and Skills Development Scotland.
What do you hope to achieve after completing your Pathway Apprenticeship programme?
I would like to gain as much experience as possible and improve my skills, especially in a business environment.
Megan Leonard, Pathway Apprentice
What were you doing before your Pathway Apprenticeship?
Before I started doing my Pathway Apprenticeship, I was working in a part-time job in a local takeaway. In this job, there were many duties. It was working in a food environment that involved answering phone calls to customers, talking to customers face-to-face and taking their orders. This job role also required me to restock the items in the shop and clean the shop up to make sure everything was ready for the next day.
What has your Pathway Apprenticeship taught you so far?
So far in my Pathway Apprenticeship, I have learned and been taught many new skills such as learning how to use different types of documents and databases, learning how to phone or contact people and becoming more confident over the phone when communicating with them. I have also learned the marketing side of the apprenticeship and learned how to take lead and work within a group.
What have you enjoyed most about working at your placement with Sixth Sense Training?
During my placement at Sixth Sense Training, I have enjoyed the digital marketing and recruitment tasks the most. I’ve enjoyed making marketing material when working on Canva and also writing out different documents.
What do you hope to achieve after completing your Pathway Apprenticeship programme?
By the end of my Pathway Apprenticeship, I want to be more confident in my work and working with different databases. I would also like to find a career by the end of this programme.
Are you interested in kickstarting your career with an apprenticeship opportunity? Discover how you can start today here. Or, are you an employer based in Scotland who would like to offer a young person experience in your workplace? Contact us today on 01355 698011 or find out more here and discover how your organisation can help a young person step into a full-length apprenticeship qualification.